Surviving a heatwave : Prison Edition

2026-06-26 10:44 UTC

Took this technique I learned in prison to make it bearable during the heatwave: Wet the window with a sponge or rag. Put aluminium foil up against it. Shiny side out. Cut beforehand on angled windows like that or use the roll on vertical surfaces. To cover the overlap, just wet the foil already on there, but be careful not to pull it off at the edge. An overlapping strip will stick to the other ones. Use masking tape to cover any overlapping edges that come away, as well as the edges that have a hard time connecting to the windowsill. This keeps out an incredible amount of heat; you can feel how hot the foil itself gets during the day, while keeping the inside nice and cool.

Replies (7)

@Dojan@pawb.social 2026-06-26 22:45

Fuck me, that’s such a good solution. My flat has all windows facing west-southwest, and I live on the top floor under the roof. I’ve had 30 degrees inside when it’s been 24 outside today. Tomorrow’s going to go up to 29. I’m going to boil in here.

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@Battle_Masker@lemmy.blahaj.zone 2026-06-26 14:13

I’ve heard a similar thing with plastic cling wrap. Tape it to the window frame with double-sided tape and use a hairdryer to further seal it to get that double pane window effect. Or get the plastic wrap kit at home depot to avoid all that measuring and fusing them together

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@sp3ctr4l@lemmy.dbzer0.com 2026-06-27 03:33

www.ecofoil.com/…/bubble-foil-insulation Just one brand, there are more than this, but basically… NASA invented fancy-pants aluminum bubble foil, literally to protect astronauts and equipment from 100% unadulterated sunshine. spinoff.nasa.gov/node/9314 It is stupidly cheap for how well it works. They basically open sourced the patent, but, the industry that makes insulation stuffing your attic is extremely not fond of this stuff, as… you basicslly only need 10% of their product, if you line the inside of your attic with radiantbarrier. I got like a 10’ x 4’ sheet of it, put it between the two panes of my south facing window. Definitely works, makes the AC’s job significantly easier.

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@Enekk@lemmy.world 2026-06-27 01:34

And, if you actually do this, you can poke a small hole in the foil and create a camera obscura!

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@tomiant@piefed.social 2026-06-26 19:03

Bro I gotta ask… You don’t live in Sweden by any chance?

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@daannii@lemmy.world 2026-06-27 05:57

If it won’t stick. Mix cornstarch and water to make a water soluble glue.

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@devaly@ani.social 2026-06-26 10:57

What about the neighbor getting a sun blast into his face? skill issue

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